In what was all but a formality, Cincinnati was eliminated from bowl contention in a 34-7 loss to Memphis.
The Cincinnati Bearcats were again outmanned, outplayed, and outclassed from the opening kickoff by a mediocre Memphis team that came in 6-4 on the season – this in front of a sparse crowd of 25,796, the lowest attendance since the university poured $86 Million into renovating Nippert Stadium. Mercifully, it’s the last time we’ll have to see it in 2016. UC hits the road to visit a surprisingly explosive, 7-3 Tulsa team next Friday to close the regular season, and then we’ll all be put out of our misery once and for all. Especially these players, who deserve far better.
There’s no question that this team has quit on head coach Tommy Tuberville and offensive coordinator Zac Taylor. The players keep saying all the right thinks on Twitter about how they love these coaches and are going to play their hearts out, but I’m not buying it. They have to say that, (because what kind of teammate would you be otherwise?), so I don’t blame them. But the facts and the results on the field are that of a defeated team that doesn’t believe anymore. Tuberville lost the locker room long ago, and it’s showing on the field every single weekend. They’ve given up hope, but you can;t blame them. Hell, even the people in the athletic office have given up. They didn’t even bother to put together a highlight video from last week’s loss at UCF, and have stopped posting in-game updates on social media.
The one plus, if you want to call it that, was that UC finally scored a touchdown for the first time in over 205 minutes of game time. That touchdown came in the fourth quarter with the ‘Cats trailing 34-0. Other than that, the only good to come out of the night was that DT Sione Tongamoa proposed to his girlfriend before the game, and she said yes. Good for them, and best wishes. For most of the rest of us who were at Nippert last night, the evening will be very forgettable.
It was a fitting end to a season that started with so much promise, only to completely fall apart. This was supposed to be a great year. There was an extra home game – one more chance to be a part of the Nippert Stadium magic. But at this point I wish there were only five home games scheduled, as there currently are in 2019.
I’ve already said all I can say about what I think of Tommy Tuberville and the rest of his staff, and hopefully we are one week closer to the end of his tenure, which I optimistically put at 18 days. At this point, all I can do is sit back and start to enjoy watching a ranked UC basketball team (hopefully) play two really good teams this weekend. I hate to be the doom and gloom guy, but it’s over, and I’m glad. I’m tired of being depressed every weekend. Weekends are supposed to be fun. And I want to thank the players who chose to be a part of our university. Know that we love you, even if we are dissatisfied with the direction the coaching staff is taking the program.
On a side note, can we offer Batman a scholarship? Because he looks like he might be our best offensive weapon right now. Not sure if he has any eligibility left, but it’s worth a shot.